Tokyo, July 20 (Jiji Press)—The Bank of Japan said Thursday it has pushed back the expected timing of attaining its 2% inflation target by one year to around fiscal 2019, which ends in March 2020.

The bank thus gave up achieving the inflation target before BOJ Governor Kuroda Haruhiko’s current term ends in April 2018.

The achievement of the target is “likely to happen around fiscal 2019,” Kuroda told a press conference, expressing regrets over the delay. But he added that he does not think it necessary to take additional monetary policy steps now.

Kuroda made the remarks after the BOJ announced the delay in its latest quarterly Outlook for Economic Activity and Prices report, adopted at its two-day Policy Board meeting that ended the same day.

This is the sixth time for the Japanese central bank to delay the expected timing. The previous postponement was made in November last year.